Rotary snowplow



Sept. 16, 1952 vANvlcK 2,610,414

ROTARY SNOWPLOW Filed May 2, 1949 Sheets-Sheet 2 /NvENmR sA/f vwv/ck y ATTORNEY l. VANVICK ROTARY SNOWPLOW Sept. 16, 1952 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed May 2, 1949 /NVEA/mn 'mx wA/wcx Sept. 16, 1952 VANVlC-K 2,610,414

ROTARY SNOWPLOW Filed May 2. 1949 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 /A/vfwmf? /sAK vA/W/CK er 'ArroRA/Ev f Patented Sept. 16, 1952 ,y l UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ROTARY SNOWPLOW Isak Vanvick, Minneapolis, Minn. l Application May 2, 1949, Serial No.7'90,905

3 Claims.

Y This invention presents a machine constituted as a rotarysnow plow incorporating features and characteristics which are improvements over the disclosure of my pending application Serial No. 6,219, for Snow Plow, led February 4, 1948, now Patent No. 2,587,415, issued -February 26, 1952.

e vThe rotary'snow plow of my above'identied application and the rotary snow plow herein illustratedy and describedv are similar in certain respects, both incorporating a structure including an open front, side walls, an intermediate wall and a rear Wall and providing a passageway, a snowgathering chamber for directing snow into the open front, a rotatable element including snow transporting members mounted in' the passageway, feed screws at the open front situated forwardly of yand in adjacent relation to the passageway. for delivering snow by way thereof to the transporting members, and means for driving. the transporting .members and feed screws. In other respects, the disclosures of my pending and `present applications .arel dissimilar. The snow plow of this invention is adapted to be connectedfwith and propelled by a selfpropelled vehicle, such, for instance, as a truck or tractor, and its feed screws and snow transporting members areadapted Vto beactuated by mechanismupon said `self-propelled vehicle, whereas the snow plow of my pendngapplicationzis manually'orv self-propelled and its feed screws and snowftransporting members are actuated byzpower means upon the snow plow itself.'

Novel-and` improved featuresand characteristics of the invention reside in the assembly with the snow plow and its "feed screws and .snow transporting members of supporting and propelling meansV forsaid snow plow and actuating means for Vsaid feedv screws and transporting members.v I f Y Other novely and improved features, applicable to, rotary snowplows vno matter how propelled, reside in the provision of a spring loaded cutter bar disposed at a forward portion "of the snow gathering chamber adapted to adjust'itself to the feed screw cutting levelya structure such that the rear land lowery workingsurfa'ces'v of Ythe snow gathering chamber are disposed close to ya'ndcon- 'centric with the feed screw to provide for positive snow handling throughout Ythe snow gathering chamber and a construction and'arrangement accomplishing a gradual transforming of a rectangular passageway from a rotor housing of the snow plow into a circular passageway for snow from said rotor housing, thus to produce a snowstream outlet from the rotor housing.

In the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification,

Fig. 1 is a front elevational View, partially in section and partially broken away, of a snow plow made according to the invention;

2 Fig. 2 is a rear elevational view of the snow plow;

Fig. 3 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view, taken on line 3-3 in Fig. l;

. Fig. 4 is a fragmentary sectional View, taken as on line 4-4 in Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary top plan view of the disclosure of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a detail view of a snow transporting member as it would appear from the bottom of the sheet in Fig. 4;

Fig. 7 is a rear perspective view of the snow plow, on a reduced scale; and

Fig. 8 is a front perspective view, on a reduced scale, with parts ofthe snow plow omitted.

A frame of the snow plow includes an upright rear wall I0, upright side walls II and I2, an upper wall I3, a lower wall I4 and a cylindrical wall 41 disposed between said rear wall I0. and the upper, lower and side walls. An intermediate part-cylindrical wall 48, between the side walls II and I2 and exterior of the cylindrical wall 41, is contiguous with a forward portion of upper wall I3 and bounds the rear of the snow gathering chamber. The rear wall I0, the side walls Iland I2, the upper wall I3, the lower wall I4, the cylindrical wall 41 and the part-cylindrical wall 48 are integrally connected in any suitable and convenient manner, as by welding or riveting. The rear wall I0, the side walls I I. and I2,"the upper Vwall I3, the lower wall I4, the cylindrical l wall 41 and the part cylindrical wall 48cooperate with a rotatable element I5 and feed screws' I6 and I1 of the snow plow to provide a snow removing or handlingnentity for said snow plow. Said rotatable element I5 is xed upon a longitudinal horizontal shaft I8 and is situated in an annular chamber I9 contiguous with the rear wall :I 0, and an annular passageway 20 disposed forwardly of said rear wall I0 is contiguous with said annular chamber I8. Annular chamber I9 and annular passageway 28 are provided by the cylindrical wall 41. Oppositeend portions of said longitudinal shaft I8 are rotatably mounted in the rear wall I8 and in a gear box 2l suitably and conveniently' supported, as at 22, upon the midlength of the upper'wall I3. The feed screws are double pitch, one is right and the other is left, and said feed screws are xedly supported upon a1transverse horizontal shaft 23 disposed forwardly ofthe annular chamber I9 and having its opposite' ends rotatably mounted, as at 24, in bearing members 25 suitably and conveniently supported in the side walls II and I2. An intermediate part of the transverse shaft 23 is rotatably mounted, as at 26in the gear box 2 I, and

thefeed'screws I5 and I1 are at opposite sides of said gear box directly in front of the annular passageway 20 to the annular chamber I9, in adjacent relation tothe lower wall I4.

The rearward end portion 21 of the longitudinal horizontal shaft I8 projects rearwardly of the rear wall I0, and said rearward end portion and said rear wall are adapted to be assembled with a self-propelled vehicle, such as a truck or tractor, so that a forward portion of the lower wall I4 f the frame Will lie in spaced relation to the ground while the snow plow is being propelled by said self-propelled vehicle. Lower portions of the feed screws IE and I'I are at elevation somewhat below that of the lowermost portion of said lower wall I4.

A self-propelled vehicle for propelling the snow plow will include a driven shaft (not shown) to be connected with the rearward end portion 21 of the longitudinal shaft I8 in such manne-r as to be capable of causing this to= be rotated. Said self-propelled vehicle driven shaft and said longitudinal shaft I8 when connected can be in alined or angular relation. A worm 28 fixed upon theV longitudinal shaft I8 and disposed in the gear box 2| meshes with a worm gear 29 fixed upon the transverse shaft 23. The rotatable element I will be driven or turned in response to ro-tation of the self-propelled vehicle driven shaft, through the instrumentality of the longitudinal shaft I8, and the feed screws I6 and I'I will be driven or Yturned in response to rotation of said driven shaft, through the instrumentality of said longitudinal shaft, the worm 23, the worm gear 29 and the transverse shaft 23.

Forward portions of the side walls II and I 2, the upper wall I3, the lower wall I4 and all of intermediate part-cylindrical wall 48 together provide a snow gathering chamber of the snow plow, and the forward portions of upper wall I3, lower wall I4 and all of the intermediate wall 43 are constituted as an integral structure. The upper wall slants downwardly` and rearwardly to merge into the intermediate wall, and said intermediate wall continues down in a circular path concentric with the feed screws tomerge into the lower wall.

The side walls I I and I2 rotatably. support a cutter bar of the snow plow. Said cutter bar is constituted as a length 33 Aof rigid material, preferably metal, which extends from side to side of the frame, and ange portions 3|, 3| integral or rigid with opposite end portions of said length 39. The flange portions 3|, 3| are perpendicular to the length 39 and extend inwardly therefrom in parallel relation to each other and in adjacent relation to the frame side walls at their inner sides, and upper parts of said flange portions are rotatably supported, as at 32, 32 upon the bearing members 25, 25. The length 3|] of the cutter bar `is curvilinear in direction transversely thereof, and the forward margin of said length is constituted as` a straight knife edge 33 spanning the distance between the ilange portions 3| 3| and in perpendicular relation to the side walls.

The concave surface of the length 30 faces upwardly, and spaced apart ears 34, 34 integral or rigid with the lower, convex surface of said length of the cutter bar and disposed in spaced relation to both its rearward edge and knife edge 33, as well as substantially at the midlength of said .cutter bar, rigidly support a rod or bar 35 disposed in openings through said ears and eX- tending to a position beyond each of the ears. The rod 35 is in spaced, parallel relation to the length 30 of the cutter bar, and a link 36, pivoted upon said rod and disposed between the ears 34, 34, extends rearwardly and upwardly. Brace rods 31, 3l, havingr their forward, exterior ends secured, as at 38, 38, to opposite end portions of the rod 35 and to the cutter bar, extend rearwardly and interiorly toward each other, and rearward, interior end portions of said brace rods, in alined relation to the link 36 in direction longitudinally of the snow plow, are secured together in overlapping relation. A rearward end portion of the link 36 passes freely through `an opening 39 in a lower extension upon the rear wall IIJ and then snugly through openings in the Yoverlapped and secured together rearward, interior end portions of the brace rods, and a nut 40 upon the rearward end of said link is turned down against the rearward, interior end portion of one of said brace rods. A compression coil spring 4| upon the link 36, between the forward surface of the lower extension upon the rear wall I0 having the opening 39 anda collar 46 upon said link, normally resiliently retains the rearward, `interior .end portions of the brace rods in engaged relation with the rearward surface of said lower extension and the cutter bar at its farthermost'forward position. The construction and arrangement will be such that the rearward edge of the length 30 of the .cutter bar will be situated in proximate relation to the forward edge of the lower wall I4 forwardly thereof, and the knife edge 33 of said length 30 will be situated below the elevation of the feed screws I6 and I'I, as in Figs. ,1, 2 and 3 of the drawings, when said cutter bar is at its vfarthermost forward position. While the rearward .edge of the length 30 of the cutter bar normally is in proximate relation to the forward edge of said lower wall I4, the flange portions 3|, 3| of said cutter bar are rotatably supported upon the side walls in such manner that the cutter .bar can swing rearwardly and upwardly in clearing relation to the lower wall and its forward edge in response to force applied .at the knife edge 33 in direction rearwardly of the snow plow.

The rotatable element I5 as disclosed is con'- stituted as a pair of snow transporting members 42 situated at 'opposite sides of and disposed radially of the longitudinal .shaft I8, although more than two snow transporting .members could be employed. Each snow transporting member 42 is straight in the direction of its length and curvilinear in cross-section.

The snow transporting members v42 are arranged concentrically of and in comparatively close relation to the cylindrical wall bounding the annular chamber I9, and'said snow transporting members are in vertical alinement with an upright outlet passageway 43 from said annular chamber. As will be apparent from the drawings,'especially Figs. 4 and `5, the outlet passageway 43 is of such configuration that there is a gradual transforming of a rectangular outlet 44 from the annular chamber I9 into a circular outlet 45 from said passageway 43.' Stated differently, the outlet passageway 43 constitutes a gradually transforming snowstream outlet from the annular chamber I9.

The rotatable element I 5 is revolved so that its snow transporting members 42 move in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 4, and said snow transporting members 42 have width a bit less than the Width of the annular chamber I9. The arrangement is such that the concave surfaces of the snow transporting members are the working and transporting surfaces, respectively, thereof.

The transverse shaft 23, with the feed screws I6 and I'I, is revolved so that said feed screws will cause snow tobe fed interiorly of the snow plow, toward the gear box 2 I.

The upright outlet passageway 43 is adapted to adjustably support a snow deflector (not shown) which can be of ordinary or preferred construction.

Duringr practical operation of the snow plow, the frame is supported so that the knife edge 33 which forms the forward margin of the cutter bar is positioned at or just above the surface of the groundl to be plowed. In hard packed snow and ice the knife edge 33 will adjust itself to the feed screw cutting level, and, too, the cutter bar will be swung upwardly and rearwardly, against the action of the compression coil spring 4I, when obstacles are encountered, thus to be in clearing relation to the obstacles. Furthermore, the cutter bar will react after the fashion of a shock absorber when obstacles are met.

The snow gathering chamber and the vcutter bar of the snow plow direct snow and icev severed from the ground into the snow plow. The feed screws I6 and I'I direct the snow and ice to the annular passageway 26A whence said snow and ice will enter the annular chamber I9 ,concurrently with movement ahead of the snow plow. The snow transporting members 42 are adapted to cause snow and ice to be forced through the outlet passageway 43 out of the machine. Each snow transporting member 42 will carry an individual load or shovel-full of snow up through 1 said outlet passageway 43. The rotatable element I5 will be revolved at a high rate of speed, and the snow and ice will leave the outlet passageway 43 in the form of individual and separate charges of snow and ice each equal in amount to a shovelfull of snow and ice forced out of the I machine under considerable momentum by the centrifugal force exerted through the snow transporting members 42. Y

Attention is called to the fact that the spring loaded cutter bar is so mounted upon the frame of the snow plow that it will be swung bodily rearwardly and upwardly when obstacles are encountered at any location along the length of the knife edge 33. Rearward and upward swinging movement of said cutter bar of course will be accompanied by compression of the coil spring 4I and rearward sliding movement of the rearward end portion of the link 3S in the opening 39 in the lower extension upon the rearvwall I0.

The feed screws I6 and I'I need not necessarily be in alined relation. In some instances it may be desirable, for example, to connect the feed screws together through the instrumentalityV of a universal joint and tilt them forwardly toward each other.

What is claimed is:

1. In a snow plow, the combination with a frame member, upright side walls, an upper wall and a part-cylindrical lower wall forming a forwardly facing snow gathering chamber and a shaft mounted in said side walls in concentric relation to said part-cylindrical wall, of a cutter bar comprising a part-cylindrical cutting plate extending between said side walls of the snow gathering chamber in concentric relation to said part-cylindrical lower wall and having a rearward surface thereof in overlapping relation to a lower, forward portion of the lower wall and a knife edge normally disposed forwardly of said lower wall, flange portions extending perpendicularly from said cutting plate and rotatably mounted on said shaft, a bar mounted on and extending longitudinally of said cutting plate adjacent the rearward surface thereof in a position normally spaced forwardly of said part-cylindrical lower wall, a link pivotally connected to said bar and passing through an extension in said frame, a pair of brace rods each pivotally secured at a first end thereof to one of opposite end portions of said bar and secured at a second end thereof to each other and to said link at a location rearward of said frame extension, and spring means. for urging said link in a direction forwardly of said frame extension.

2.'In a snow plow, the combination with a frame member, upright side walls, an upper wall and a part-cylindrical lower wall forming a forwardly facing snow gathering chamber and a shaft mounted in said side walls in concentric relation to said part-cylindrical wall, of a cutter bar lcomprising a part-cylindrical cutting plate extending between said side walls of the snow gathering chamber in concentric relation to said part-cylindrical lower wall and having a rearward surface thereof in'overlapping relation to a lower, forward portion of the lower wall and a knife edge normally disposed forwardly of said vlower wall, ange portions extending perpendicularly from said cuttingv plate and rotatably mounted on said shaft, and spring means for urging said cutting plate to swing forwardly.

3. In a snowV plow, the combination with a frame member, upright side walls, an upper wall and a part-cylindrical lower wall forming a forwardly facing snow gathering chamber and a shaftmountedin said side walls in concentric relation to said part-cylindrical wall, of a cutter bar comprising a part-cylindrical cutting plate extending between said side walls of the snow gathering chamber in concentric relation to said part-cylindrical lower wall and having a rearward surface thereof in overlapping relation to a lower, forward portion of the lower wall and a knife edge normally disposed forwardly of saidlower wall, flange portions extending perpendicularly from said cutting plate and rotatably mounted on said shaft, a bar mounted on and extending longitudinally of said cutting plate adjacent the rearward surface thereof in a position normally spacedA forwardly of said part-cylindrical lower wall, a link pivotally connected to said bar and passing through an extension rigid with said frame, and spring means urging said link in a direction forwardly of said extension.

ISAK VANVICK.

REFERENCES CITED Y The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Cadwell Dec. 4, 1945 

